IBM has made a multi-million dollar investment in establishing three 'Banking Centres of Excellence' designed to help financial services clients modernise IT systems and create new business models.
Two of the facilities have been opened at IBM's existing labs in Silicon Valley and Poughkeepsie, NY. The third is part of IBM's new lab in Seoul, Korea.
IBM says the establishment of the centres is a direct response to the business challenges financial services firms face including global competition, a fluid regulatory environment, rising operating costs and growing consumer indifference to banks.
Clients and independent software vendors (ISVs) can access the centres directly or virtually, says IBM. The centres are staffed by experienced professionals with relevant technical and financial expertise
In particular, staff will work with banks to help design and implement new back office systems and transform legacy application software to flexible, open standards-based core banking and payments systems, says the vendor. As a result, says Big Blue, banks will be able to adjust to shifting market conditions, lower operating costs and achieve a single view of customer data.
"By integrating and renovating legacy software with service-oriented architectures and performance boosting expertise, our labs can help clients get the most out of their IT investments and better meet the needs of their customers," says Steve Mills, senior vice president, IBM Software Group.
The centres will also help clients with business and technology design, vendor and package selection, modelling, proof of concepts and benchmark testing, deployment and system migration.